My Heart Won't Let Me Forget
by Akari Sakura
Summary: I go to him all the time. They tore down the houses and restored the river. Now I visit him... I never forgot him. My heart won't let me.
1. Chapter 1

I go to him all the time. They tore down the houses and restored the river. Now I visit him. Everyone had forgotten the events of the Spirit Bath House, but I remember, because I still have the hair tie that Boh and the little bird made. I remember the boy who helped me. The boy who saved me. The spirit of the Kohaku River. I knew him as a great friend. A savior. He saved me from Yubaba's evil clutches. He told me to leave and not turn back. He promised we would meet again. I saved him from Yubaba, like he saved me. Now I visit him every chance I get. I only wish to see his face, but for now I will settle for his River. I never forgot him. My heart won't let me.

* * *

><p>"Master Haku! Master Haku!" The frog called. "Master Haku. Why must you always come here?" The frog asked. "I told you to call me Master Kohaku." I reminded him. After being defeated by Chihiro, Yubaba became very ill. Years later, she died and the bathhouse needed a new owner. I had trained under Yubaba, so I decided to take over when she died. Her sister still lives, so I still visit my river, and no one cares because everyone loves Zeniba.<p>

"I'm here because this is my river." I explained to the idiot servant frog. "Of course Master Kohaku." The frog bowed. "Now leave, I wish to be alone." I ordered. "Yes Master Kohaku." The frog bowed and left.

I sighed and went back to staring at my river. She still visits it every now and again. I miss her. I doubt she remembers me though. She shouldn't. If she does, she's still in danger.

She saved me. I wanted to forget her. I _needed_ to forget her, because as long as I still remember, she's in danger. I promised Zeniba I would look after her. I promised i_myself_/i I wouldn't let her in harms way, and that, if she did get in its way, I would always rescue her.

Pure love. That's what saved me. She cared for me, so I was saved. I realized then, that I loved her too. I wanted her to stay. As I rush off to Zeniba's to tell her how I felt, I realized, if she stayed, she'd be in harms way everyday. So, I let her go. I have to forget, it's crucial, but my heart won't let me.

* * *

><p>"Chihiro! Chihiro!" My mother called. "Chihiro, come on, it's time to go back to the hotel." She told me. "Just a second." I called. I put the note to Kohaku in the bottle, closed it, and set the bottle adrift in the river. I watched it until it was out of sight. Then I headed back with my mother.<p>

We drove to the Hotel and went to our room. My parents soon fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillows. I, however, didn't. I couldn't. I wanted to know if he got my message. I took off the hair tie my friends made and looked at it. It was the only thing I had left from the spirit world. I sighed once more and tied my hair back, not wanting to forget for a second about my friends from the spirit world, or Kohaku.

Kohaku. The boy I love. The boy I saved. The boy I cared for. The boy my heart won't let me forget.

* * *

><p>There was a lot of work this night. I sighed as I sat in my office. I hated being pampered and having such a big office, but I deal with it in hopes of eventually forgetting about Chihiro.<p>

I sighed and left my office to go see my river once more. I'm always there nowadays, mainly because I can't stay away from the river for long, or her for that matter.

When I reached my usual spot to sit, I saw a bottle in the river. I sighed. i_Stupid people, don't you know not to pollute_./i I thought. I sighed once more and picked it out of the water. I right before I throw it away, I realize there's a note in it. Curious, I opened the bottle and took a look at the note. It was from Chihiro! It read:

My dear Kohaku,

I wish to see you once more, like you had promised. I have waited patiently, but fear we will not meet as promised. Please, I wish to see you again. I love you, and have missed you. I want to see your face once more! I'm so desperate that I will meet you in the Spirit World if I must. Please, visit me!

Your love,

Chihiro

NO! She cannot visit! It's too dangerous for a human here! I must stop her. I must visit her like I promised all those years ago. The girl my heart won't let me forget.


	2. Chapter 2: The Promise

I tossed and turned in my sleep as I dreamt of Yubaba torturing me. She was torturing me because I had told Haku his real name, and he had left. I cried as she whipped me and beat me. I cried not only due to the pain of the whip, but also due to the pain in my heart. Haku had left me.

I finally woke with a start from the horrible dream and cried. "Kohaku." I sobbed as I drew my knees together and hugged them. I wanted to see Kohaku. I missed him. I cried and cried the rest of the night and finally stopped when my parents began to stir. _They can't know about this, they don't remember the Spirit World. I must be strong._ I thought to myself. _For Kohaku…_

* * *

><p>"Master Kohaku! Where are you going?" Asked one of the servants. "The human world." I answered simply. "But, Master Kohaku, it is forbidden for spirits to enter the human world." The servant warned. "I will be alright, this is more important than the rules." I said. "But Master Kohaku, the King will not be happy about this." The servant warned. "Then let him be unhappy, this is important to me." I snapped. "Well I guess there's no way to stop you." The servant sighed. "However, you should at least stay until night." The servant offered. "Okay then, I will leave at night." I agreed.<p>

I waited until night like I said I would, although I wish I hadn't. I wanted to see her. I needed to see her. If I don't, she will come to the Spirit World, and then she will be in grave danger. The new King of the Spirit World did not like humans; he did not want them in the Spirit World at all. Unlike when Chihiro first came, Humans are now forbidden to enter the Spirit World. I sighed. _I must protect her._ I thought. _Even if it means letting her go, I must protect her._

I sighed and left the Spirit World through my river. When I reached shore, I closed my eyes and tried to sense where Chihiro was. I sighed when I found her. _A hotel, of course. My river is too far away from her house. _I thought. _I guess I will be waiting here for her. _I sighed and waited. Waited for Chihiro

* * *

><p>"Chihiro! Come on, we're going to the River!" My mother called. I awoke from my sleep and immediately started getting ready for the river. I got dressed and ready in a short time. Today was the day I got to find out if Kohaku got my note.<p>

Soon we reached the river and started setting up the picnic lunch my mom packed. I told my parents I'd be in the river and left to play. As time went on, I realized I was starting to play farther and farther away from the picnic area.

Suddenly, the water came up behind me and grabbed me, like a human would. I wanted to scream, but the water wouldn't let me. Slowly, the water around my waist and mouth became hands. "Don't be afraid." A voice came. I knew then who it was. _Kohaku._

* * *

><p>"Kohaku!" she cried as she turned around and pulled me into a hug. "Hello Chihiro." I smiled as I hugged her back. "Wha– where have you been?" she asked. "Not now, I will tell you when the time comes, for now, let's have fun." I smiled. "Okay. But wait, what about my parents." She asked. I thought about it for a little while. "How about you just tell them that you're going to go with a friend to see the town." I suggested. "I don't know…" She said. "Just try it." I whispered. "Okay." She nodded.<p>

I went over to my parents and said what Kohaku had told me to, and, surprisingly, they said it was okay. I ran back smiling to Kohaku. "They said it's okay!" I smiled. "I knew they would." He smiled. "Now come on, let's go have some fun." He smiled. "Okay." I nodded.

We did everything couples would do. He took me to a near by amusement park and we had the best fun. We rode rollercoasters, we rode the merry-go-round, we went into the haunted house, and we ate ice cream and cotton candy. I smiled the whole time. As did Kohaku.

He eventually took me to a restaurant, where we drank smoothies. "I haven't seen you in awhile." He said. "Yeah, I've missed you a whole lot." I agreed. "How's Lin? And Boh? Is No-Face okay?" I asked suddenly. "One thing at a time." He reminded. I nodded.

"How's Yubaba?" I asked. "She… died." He answered. "Oh…" I said. "Soon after you defeated her, she became ill and eventually died." He explained. "Oh…" I repeated, unable to say anything more. "Now I run the bathhouse, along side Zeniba and Boh." He told me "No-Face helps out around Zeniba's house while she gone." He said, answering my next question. "Oh…" I repeated.

"How's Lin?" I asked, still kind of sad. "Lin's great, she's still working, but after you came, she's been nicer and happier." He smiled.

"Oh, that's good." I said. "What's wrong?" Kohaku asked. "I just… I miss everyone." I admitted. " I wish I could go back." I sighed. "No. You must never go back. It's not safe there." Kohaku said quickly, sounding like his old self. "But I was able to survive last time." I argued. "Things were different last time. The Spirit World has changed." He explained. "But–" "No." He cut me off.

He must have seen he hurt me, because the next thing he said was, "I'm sorry. I just don't want anything to hurt you." He explained. "What's gonna hurt me that didn't get me last time I visited the Spirit World?" I argued. "That doesn't matter, what matters is that it _will_ hurt you, and I can't allow that." He explained. "Look, I care about you, and I couldn't bare seeing something hurt you." He said. "Now come on, let's finish our smoothies." He smiled.

After that, we finished our smoothies, and he took me back to the hotel, where my parents where waiting. I smiled and hugged him. "Thank you for a wonderful day." I said. He smiled and hugged me back. "You're welcome." He said. "Promise we'll meet again when things are sorted out in the Spirit World?" I asked. "Promise." He promised.

That night, I couldn't sleep. I kept wondering what was so dangerous that I couldn't go back to the spirit world. When I finally did fall asleep, I dreamt about the time I visited the Spirit World. I dreamt about how I first met Haku on the bridge to the spirit bathhouse, and how he my parents turned to pigs. I dreamt about how he helped me up and how he told me where to go so I wouldn't turn into an animal by Yubaba. I dreamt about how Haku protected me the entire time and how he saved me, how I saved him, how I cared for him. I smiled as I slept that night.

* * *

><p>I returned to the Spirit World after dropping her off at the hotel she was staying at. I sighed, as I knew what was coming. I got out of the water and walked over to the spirit bathhouse. A servant came and met me.<p>

"Mast Kohaku, the King wishes to see you." The servant said. "I know, it's about the human world right?" I asked. When no one answered I sighed and left to the elevator. I rode two elevators up and finally reached my floor. I walked through the many doors and finally entered my office. There he stood, waiting. The King of The Spirit World.


	3. Chapter 3: Waiting for You

"Well hello Kohaku." The king smiled evilly. "Hello my king." I sighed. "Why Kohaku, that is no way to greet your king, you must bow and say 'your majesty'." The king said in mock surprise. "Now bow." He ordered. "No." I simply said. "Bow!" He ordered as he pushed down his finger. I forcefully bowed due to his strong magic. "Much better, you may rise now." He said, releasing his hold on me.

I stood up and dusted off my shirt. "What do you want?" I snapped. "Hmph, well that's no way to speak your king, but since you asked, I'm here about your visit to the human world." He said. "So what if I visited the human world?" I griped. "Hmph, well I didn't want you to bring back any humans, especially since you have a history with them, with one in particular actually." He said. This angered me. "So what?" I snapped. "Well I don't want my world to intermix with the humans." He said as if it was obvious. "Well then you should be happy, I went to stop a human from coming in." I informed. "Ah, well great job Kohaku. But make sure it doesn't happen again." The king ordered. "I will, don't worry." I assured. "Good." He said.

Once he was gone, I sighed. _I guess I will have to wait awhile to fulfill my new promise to Chihiro._

* * *

><p>***<br>Time Skip: One Year Later  
>***<p>

It's been a year since Kohaku last visited. I've been waiting each day for his return. Eventually I became worried about what had happened to him. _Was it forbidden to come here? _I wondered. _What happened? _ _Was he punished? Was he killed?_ I worried. The more I waited, the more worried I became.

Eventually I couldn't wait any longer. I wanted to see him. I _needed_ to see him. I love him. I cared for him. I can't stand to be away from him. _I need to go to the Spirit World._ I thought. So I did.

"Here it is. Just as I remembered it." I said. I sighed. _Maybe I shouldn't _I thought. I was about to turn around when I felt the wind wanting to pull me in. I remembered the first time I came here. The wind wanted to pull us in then too. _Maybe I should go in._ I thought. I wanted to, but was too afraid of what Kohaku had warned me about. _That's whom I'm here for! _I thought. _Kohaku, that's who I'm here for, Kohaku. _I thought once more. I turned back around and ran inside.

* * *

><p>I just happened to be looking at the entrance to my world. The place she left the first time she came here. I was imagining what it would be like had I stopped her, had the king not died. That's when she appeared from the entry. I gasped. Then I remembered the dangers of her being here. "You shouldn't be here. Get out of here. Now!" I exclaimed, repeating what I had said all those years ago, on the bridge to the bathhouse. The only difference is, she didn't try and listen. "No." She said. "You have to go before he–" a servant calling cut me off.<p>

"Master Kohaku!" The servant called. "Quick, hide." I whispered. This time she listened and jumped behind a bush. "Master Kohaku, the sun will be setting soon." The servant informed. "I will return soon." I said. "Okay." The servant bowed and left.

As soon as he was out of sight, I signaled Chihiro to come out. "What was that all about?" she asked. "Never mind that now, you have to leave before–" The sun started to set. "Great." I muttered. I quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her along as I went my full speed across the field before the water started to rise. Then I continued on until we were through the secret door to the garden.

"We'll have to enter through the boiler room." I muttered to myself. "What's going on Kohaku?" She asked. I sighed. "I might as well tell you." I sighed. "Tell me what?" She asked. "About the king, our world is ruled by a king and queen. Last time you were here, the king didn't mind humans, but loved to play tricks on them, he's the one that ordered we leave the food out and have them turned into pigs. But He has since then died. Now, the new king hates humans and will stop at nothing to keep our worlds from intermixing." I explained.

"The first thing the sun rises, you're gonna leave." I ordered. "But what about you? I can't leave you here with that king, we'll never see each other again!" She exclaimed. "Maybe it's for the best." I said. She thought about this for a little bit. "No." She finally said. "I'm staying here. Maybe if we gather up enough people, we can over throw the king." She suggested. "Not many people mind not having humans here. In fact they love it. Also, even if we get enough people, the king is to powerful; we'll never win." I countered. "Then we'll just have to try." She said. "We'll just have to try."


End file.
